Indian Telcos Cuts Benefits On Special Tariff Vouchers

By: Gizbot Bureau

Published: Thursday, January 24, 2013, 18:28 [IST]

Leading Telecom service provider, Airtel has cut benefits on its special tariff vouchers. This comes less than a month after hiking the rates of data plans and SMS offers. The mobile company declined reports claiming hikes in mobile tariffs but acknowledged the benefit-cuts.

The statement released by the company said that there was no change in headline tariff but promotional benefits have been reduced in certain circles. The spokesperson of Airtel refused to comment on the changes to be brought about in benefits. He said that benefits and special vouchers may vary from region to region.

In a similar note, Idea cellular has also reduced its special benefits to users. It has also hiked the basic tariff to 1.5 paisa per second in some cases. The company however did not comment on the sudden move to reduce promotional benefits. However, the insiders said the company has removed promotional offers to stay competitive. Vodafone may also follow suit.

The shares of Bharti Airtel have now increased by 3.46 per cent to sell at Rs.363.80 on the Bombay Stock Exchange. The company said that tariff hikes and promotional benefit reductions are inevitable keeping in view the rising prices.

Airtel and Vodafone increased their 2G tariff rates barely a month ago. The data plan which was earlier sold at Rs. 99 for 1 GB is now Rs. 125 in all major cities. The quota of data in each special voucher has also been reduced and the price of STVs has been increased. The data pack of 2GB with unlimited usage offered by Idea and Airtel, now costs Rs.199 as compared to Rs.149 earlier.